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RALEIGH, NC (February 4, 2010) - Surgical Review Corporation (SRC), an independent, nonprofit organization that advances the safety, efficacy and efficiency of bariatric and metabolic surgery, today announced the first Latin American International Centers of Excellence for Bariatric Surgery (ICE): Hospital Alemão Oswaldo Cruz and Hospital dos Fornecedores de Cana de Piracicaba, both located in Brazil. These providers demonstrated their dedication to safe, high-quality bariatric surgical patient care by completing the rigorous review and site inspection process required for ICE designation.
The ICE designation, awarded in tandem to individual surgeons and the facility in which they perform bariatric procedures, was achieved by Hospital Alemão Oswaldo Cruz in São Paulo, Brazil, and Drs. Carlos Schiavon, Luiz Berti, Arthur Garrido and Ricardo Cohen. Established in 1897, Hospital Alemão Oswaldo Cruz is recognized as one of the city's leading hospitals and has quickly grown its bariatric program to a position of prominence. Under the direction of Dr. Garrido, who is thought to have performed the first bariatric surgery procedure in Brazil, the program emphasizes multidisciplinary and postoperative care.
"Each Board member provides unique perspectives and expertise," said Dr. Neil Hutcher, Chairman of the SRC Board of Directors and a bariatric surgeon at Commonwealth Surgeons in Richmond, Virginia. "Our Board has the experience necessary to help guide SRC's growth and strengthen our ability to set the global standard for bariatric and metabolic surgical excellence."
"Receiving the ICE designation confirms our efforts to provide high-quality bariatric procedures, with the support of Hospital Alemão Oswaldo Cruz and a very committed multidisciplinary team," said Dr. Schiavon.
Hospital dos Fornecedores de Cana in Piracicaba, Brazil, and Dr. Irineu Rasera, Jr., proudly earned the ICE designation, and together have performed bariatric surgical procedures since 1998. They are among the first providers in the country to offer these services, and the hospital's landmark bariatric program pioneered a multidisciplinary patient care approach as well as laparoscopic techniques. Additionally, the program has been recognized by the Brazilian Ministry of Health and São Paulo State Secretary of Health as a Unit for High Complexity Assistance to the Severely Obese Patient since 2001.
"This designation is the result of joint efforts, involving commitment from the Hospital dos Fornecedores de Cana and Dr. Rasera and his team," said Elisabete Cristina Shiraga, Bariatric Coordinator of the Clínica Bariátrica of the Hospital dos Fornecedores de Cana de Piracicaba. "Since starting their bariatric surgery activities 12 years ago, these providers have focused on the delivery of Total Patient Care. This approach emphasizes high-quality care and the long-term management of the obese patient. The ICE designation process prompted a review of our administrative processes and protocols, which in turn strengthened our team's delivery of ongoing care. We are proud that our follow-up efforts now extend to more than 90 percent of our 3,500 bariatric surgery patients."
To best accommodate the high volume of Latin American applicants to the ICE program, SRC established a Latin American International Bariatric Surgery Review Committee (IBSRC) in 2009 to govern the ICE program and review applications in this region. This committee, comprised of leading bariatric surgeons from Latin America, recently added two new members: Dr. Carlos Schiavon, Medical Director at Baros Instituto de Cirurgia Avancada at Hospital Alemão Oswaldo Cruz in São Paulo, Brazil, and Dr. Natan Zundel, Minimally Invasive and Bariatric Surgery Consultant at Fundación Santa Fé de Bogotá in Bogotá, Colombia, and Professor of Surgery at Florida International University College of Medicine in Miami, Florida.
"The growth of the ICE initiative in Latin America has been remarkable," said Dr. Raul Rosenthal, Chairman of the IBSRC and a bariatric surgeon at Cleveland Clinic in Weston, Florida. "The Brazilian designees join the more than 400 facilities and 700 surgeons worldwide that have already earned a center of excellence designation through SRC. By creating this global network of excellence, SRC provides a mechanism that improves overall patient care and enables clinical research for obesity and metabolic diseases."
About Surgical Review Corporation
Surgical Review Corporation (SRC) is an independent, nonprofit organization governed by industry stakeholders and dedicated to advancing the safety, efficacy and efficiency of bariatric and metabolic surgical care worldwide. To support best practices development for the treatment of morbid obesity and its associated conditions, SRC launched center of excellence programs for bariatric surgery and developed the Bariatric Outcomes Longitudinal Database (BOLD). SRC has already designated 700 surgeons and more than 400 hospitals and freestanding outpatient facilities across the globe, and BOLD is now the world's largest repository of clinical bariatric surgery patient data. For more information, visit surgicalreview.org
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